


There's Something About Makoto

by brewcha



Category: Free!
Genre: Elementary School, Free! Kink Meme, Gen, High Speed!, M/M, Rin has unexplainable dokis, and Makoto is sweet and caring and flawless, if you can call it fluff, lots of emphasis on Makoto's eyes, vague fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-21
Updated: 2013-10-30
Packaged: 2017-12-30 01:23:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1012339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brewcha/pseuds/brewcha
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There's something about Makoto that Rin noticed and he couldn't understand why he liked it so much.</p><p>[ De-anon from kink meme: <em>Rin lost his dad at young age, and tends to look for a fatherly figure in his love interests. Makoto fits the bill.</em></p><p><em>I don't want a "call me daddy" type of fanfiction, more like Rin wanting to get Makoto to do stuff like ruffle his hair and tell him "good job", tell him off when he's being an ass, and take care of him when he's down/sick, without really knowing why himself. High-Speed age or current doesn't matter, but only sex if they're old enough to have it please.</em> ]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. In which Rin notices

**Author's Note:**

> My first contribution to the Free! fandom, and Archive in general, I hope you like it. Character ages from High Speed!.

_Rin had always known how to take care of himself from the word ‘go’._

_His mother was often busy with work and he had a little sister (though, really, Gou was so headstrong that she always tried to do things herself no matter how many times Rin insisted on looking after her). You can kind of say Rin made sure that he could take care of himself, so that he could take care his mother and sister too._

_That’s what his dad would do, right? Rin was determined not to disappoint his Pops. In his place, he had to be the ‘man of the house’! He had to be tough and strong and look after himself and everyone as well._

\---

“Does Tachibana do that all the time?”

Nagisa blinked.

“Do what, RinRin?” Rin felt himself warm up in the face at the nickname.

“I said don’t call me that!” Rin huffed, to which the blonde only responded with a giggle. Rin busied himself with folding his towel and fitting it into his bag, puffing indignantly as he always did each time the girly nickname popped up. Nagisa hopped over.

“So what do you mean by does Mako-chan do ‘that’ all the time? Do what?”

Rin lifted his gaze then nodded past Nagisa’s shoulder. “That.”

Practice at the swimming club was over, and most of the other boys had by then taken their things, shut their lockers and headed out to be picked up by some family member or head off home. Naturally, of course, Rin always lingered by the pool to squeeze in some extra laps (Nagisa often liked to watch with awestruck glee) before finally hitting the showers.

Though Rin may be one of the last boys to leave the pool, he certainly was not the _last_ last _._

“You can’t stay in the pool for too long, Haru-chan. They need to clean up, you know.” Makoto was following Haruka into the locker rooms. The taller brunette boy was already cleaned up and dry in his clothes and jersey, and Rin had seen him murmuring worriedly to himself after his shower before going back out to find the dark-haired boy.

Haruka grunted something in reply ( _Probably something like “drop the ‘chan’ already”,_ Rin thought), his hair dripping over his eyes as he reached into his locker. As Rin and Nagisa watched, his arm stopped short and his frown seemed to widen. ( _Or deepen?_ Rin briefly wondered.)

Makoto, of course, knew instantly what issue had suddenly plagued upon the blue-eyed boy (Rin could hardly expect anything less). “Haru-chan, did you forget your towel? Here, I brought an extra.”

Haruka took the towel without hesitation, draping it over his arm. When he spoke, Rin could actually _hear_ him: “Drop the ‘chan’ already.” He ignored the nakedly staring gazes of both Rin and Nagisa as he passed them to head for the showers.

When Rin glanced over, Makoto was laughing softly. “I’ll wait for you here, Haru.”

As if it was the intermission of a performance and he was aching to speak the entire time, Nagisa whirled around to face Rin again. “So what did you mean by ‘that’?”

“That!” Rin, who had been watching the entire exchange with a scrutinizing expression, stopped himself from shouting. “Y’know…Tachibana is always fussing over Nanase, like he couldn’t take care of himself or something.” He pointedly lowered his voice (he wouldn’t put it past Nagisa to announce to the entire world what they were talking about without actually doing so).

“Oh that?” Nagisa lowered his voice as well, though it sounded more like a stage whisper. “Mako-chan does that all the time! It’s like he’s Haru-chan’s second-mom! Isn’t it cute?”

Rin frowned despite Nagisa’s giggles. “That doesn’t make sense. He can’t be Nanase’s mom,” Rin said logically as he zipped his bag shut and slung it over his shoulder.

“Oh,” Nagisa blinked, looking thoughtful. “You’re right. He can’t be Haru-chan’s mom because Haru-chan already has a mom…”

“What are you talking about?” Rin and Nagisa nearly _jumped_ when they heard Makoto’s voice. The taller boy had walked up to them without them knowing, his head tilted and his droopy green eyes blinking with curiousity. (Though, as Rin observed, it didn’t seem like he had heard anything but the tail end of the conversation.)

“Rin-chan was just asking me about Ma----umffff!” Nagisa’s voice turned into a muffled shriek (or giggle? Rin would never know) as Rin clamped his hand over the boy’s (loud) mouth.

Makoto laughed, seemingly unaware of what Nagisa was really trying to say, or Rin’s embarrassingly red face. “You two look like you’re having fun. Ah, don’t let me stop you, I should go check on Haru…”

“Why?” Rin couldn’t help but blurt out the question. Makoto’s eyes blinked at him in surprise.

“Huh? Oh. He’s just been in there for quite a while already. If he lets himself get soaked for too long, it’s not good for his skin after all.”

 _It’s like he’s Haru-chan’s second-mom!_ Rin couldn’t help but wonder whether it was because of Nagisa’s bright eyes fixated on him or simply a ring of a memory that made those words resonate louder in his mind.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Makoto said cheerfully. “Oh, and good job today, Matsuoka-kun!” As he passed them, Rin felt the taller boy’s hand ruffle his hair and he found himself spluttering in surprise.

Instead of a “what?” or a “thanks Tachibana!” like a normal person would, Rin found himself blurting out something completely different at the back of the tall, wide-shouldered boy:

“Do that again, Tachibana.”

_Uh._

“Huh?” Makoto paused and glanced at him in surprise. Rin could feel Nagisa dissipate into a fit of giggles under his hand.

_Uuuuhhhhhh._

“Nothing!” Rin spluttered. Was it the steam in the locker room coming from the shower that made his face all hot all of a sudden? “Nothing---ah…uh…hahaha…go check on Nanase!”

Makoto blinked, before smiling faintly (a little puzzled) and continuing on his way with another “I’ll see you tomorrow!”

Rin just stared, his hair still a little tousled.

“…”

“…”

“— _AHHHH DID YOU LICK ME?!”_

“I had to or RinRin could’ve suffocated me!”

Rin snapped out of his daze with a sharp shake of his head, puffing at a stray strand of hair in his face. He snatched his bag – which had slid off during the conversation – back up his shoulder and marched out of the locker room and the club building.

“I got it!”

Undeterred, Nagisa was charging right after Rin with his own bag hastily slung over his shoulder.

“RinRin, I got it!”

“Stop calling me that!” Rin huffed, kneeling down to tie his sneakers properly. Nagisa huffed back with an extra pout, as if mimicking him.

“Listen to me, Rin-chan! I got it!”

“Got what?” Nagisa was dancing some random improvised jig on the spot and Rin was partially worried he might suddenly absorb a bunch of energy and blast off into the sky.

Nagisa grinned and snapped his fingers. “Well Mako-chan can’t be Haru-chan’s mom, obviously, because he’s a guy! A boy!”

Rin stared at him. Nagisa seemed to take that as if the older boy didn’t get it.

“You know…a boy…like Mako-chan has a—“

“ _I know that!_ ” Rin sighed loudly, for effect. Gosh, he was warming up a lot today. “What is your point?” Nagisa blinked at him rapidly, radiating innocence.

“I was gonna say, well, Mako-chan isn’t like a mom, then he’s probably like a dad!”

_Oh._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't written a fanfiction in ages (and I got quite nervous posting this) so please bear with me in case you noticed any inconsistencies and OOCness. I'm anticipating about 5 chapters (or "parts", as I label them in my outline). Also possible grammar/spelling mistakes. Still, I hope y'all like it!


	2. That perhaps Makoto

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just so you know, each chapter begins with a small...um...bit of Rin's introspection? Not sure if you can call it that but I just thought it'd be a nice format to use. Once again, hope you enjoy!

_Rin liked looking after Gou even though they really were just one year apart. He liked taking her out to get ice cream when they both go down to the convenience store to run an errand. He liked on certain weekdays when there was no swim club to worry about he’d walk home with her. He liked washing dishes with her and chiding her when she does something wrong and she huffs at him and they sort of get into a typical bicker._

_Some other boys he knew would often complain about some thing their little sister did. Even other girls with their little siblings. Rin, of course, had his moments because Gou can be a little_ too _headstrong, but at the end he just ends up declaring that whatever ‘problem’ he had was no problem at all. He was a big brother, after all._

_He just liked being a big brother to Gou._

\---

It was another convenience store errand. Rin grinned broadly and bashfully, as he always did, as the friendly lady at the counter gushed over how responsible he was since she had seen him run similar errands quite a few times in the past before.

Unwrapping a watermelon popsicle (the lady had given it to him for free) whilst hefting his backpack containing a carton of milk and some biscuits back up on his back, Rin stepped out of the Mart and glanced up at the sky.

It was a Saturday and the sun wasn’t quite setting yet: he could afford to take a (long) detour to the park.

“Ren! Ran! Don’t push each other or you’ll fall!”

Rin, munching halfway through the popsicle, paused and glanced around. He was approaching past a playground – not without a number of kids squealing, playing tag around the slides and precariously hanging off the monkey bars – when he heard a voice that ought to belong to a certain olive-haired, broad-shouldered boy.

“Hey, Tachibana.” Said olive-haired broad-shouldered boy blinked and whirled around in surprise. His expression swiftly softened into a smile of recognition when he saw Rin.

“Hi, Matsuoka-kun! What a coincidence,” Makoto eyed Rin’s backpack and the popsicle. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“I was running an errand,” Rin explained, gnawing down at the popsicle before grinning slightly. “Nor I you, actually. You’re too big for the slides, aren’t you? Eh, Tachibana?” He poked Makoto on the shoulder and received a laugh in response.

“I’m just watching after the twins!” Rin remembered that ‘the twins’ meant Makoto’s younger siblings who were in kindergarten. “They wanted to come out to the park here and parents were preoccupied, so I offered to take them.”

Rin nodded, his eyes automatically surveying the noisy bunch. He hasn’t actually met Makoto’s siblings before and felt curious, since the other boy often spoke of them fondly.

“Where are---?”

“ _Big brother!_ ”

As if completely on cue, two small figures cannonballed into Makoto with a force that could completely put Hazuki Nagisa’s affectionate tackles to shame. Much credit could be given to Tachibana Makoto as he only staggered a little and laughed, whilst Rin was sure he himself would have been laid flat on the ground.

“Who are you talking to, big brother?”

“Can we meet him, big brother?”

Makoto laughed as he nudged the two tiny figures off his knees (for, Rin would swear, they were literally clinging onto said knees).

“Ren, Ran, this is Rin Matsuoka. Matsuoka-kun, Ren and Ran.”

Two pairs of bright eyes turned up towards Rin. Rin grinned at them, flashing his own pointy tooth.

“Yo! I’m Rin Matsuoka. I have a girly name but I’m obviously a guy.” Makoto laughed softly at the familiar introduction, which made Rin flush. (The introduction came out of habit than anything, but Rin liked the increase in friendliness in the twins’ eyes at the notion of a boy with a feminine name.)

“Like Haru-chan and big brother?” Ren nudged Makoto.

“Sounds cool!” Ran decided, already latching onto Rin’s knee.

“Matsu…Matsuoka…aaaahhhh…big brother talks about you sometimes! Like you swim really fast and good!” Rin’s grin widened in spite of himself.

“So you talk about me, huh, Tachibana?” Rin laughed. “Oh yeah, I swim _really_ fast and good.” _To be an Olympic swimmer…_

“Better than Haru-chan?” Ren was latching onto Rin’s other knee now, despite Makoto’s protests.

Rin puffed, “Not yet.” Makoto chuckled slightly, which made Rin flush again.

Ren and Ran seemed satisfied with the answer, though they did not release their grip on Rin. Rin let them, though he figured he was only managing to stay upright was because he hadn’t put his knees to use yet. If he did, he would surely buckle and fall, and then get flocked and eaten by the screaming cannon ballers from the slides.

“Come on, Ren, Ran, don’t cling on Matsuoka-kun like that.” As if having read Rin’s mind (Rin wouldn’t put past that notion, having seen Makoto with Haruka), Makoto chided the twins again.

“But I wanna!” Ran whined, puffing out her cheeks. “Rin-chan has a popsicle!”

 _Oh?_ Rin had nearly forgotten about his watermelon popsicle. It was dripping slightly down its surface, to which Rin saved by quickly swiping his tongue over the melting droplets. It was nearly finished anyway, so he decided to just gnaw on the rest. “Oops, finished.”

“Not fair!” Ren pouted. “I want a popsicle too.”

“Me too! Ne ne, big brother, can we have popsicles?” Ran jumped off Rin and transferred her latch back on Makoto, Ren following suit. Rin laughed at Makoto’s resigned sigh.

“I want a popsicle! I want a melon pop soda popsicle!”

“There’s no such flavour!”

“Yes there is! I saw it myself!”

“No there isn’t, you’re lying!”

“I’m not lying!”

“Alright, enough, you guys,” Makoto sighed again. Rin couldn’t help but find Makoto’s soft chiding very characteristic of him. “If you two are going to keep arguing, neither one of you will get popsicles.”

Ren and Ran whined a little in protest but Makoto, for all his soft chiding and _softness in general_ really, frowned disapprovingly. Rin felt vaguely wistful.

“Okay, big brother,” Ran finally relented, huffing in Ren’s direction. “We’ll play nice.”

Makoto’s smile was instantaneous. Rin thought that if _he_ were Makoto’s little sibling, the smile would have been more than enough reward, even without popsicles. “Good. Now apologize to Matsuoka-kun for making such a fuss.”

“Huh? They don’t have t—“ The two pairs of bright eyes turned up towards Rin again before he could brush it off.

“Sorry, Rin-chan!” “I’m sorry, Rin-chan!”

Well. “Ah no problem you two.” Rin just grinned at them, feeling slightly warmed by Makoto’s consideration. He watched as Makoto gave his approval at the twins’ apology and Rin vaguely heard him shoo them off to go back to playing on the playground, savouring the last tastes of the watermelon popsicle even though the “watermelony” taste had faded off long ago.

“Sorry about that, Matsuoka-kun.” Makoto’s apologetic chuckle broke through Rin’s thoughts.

Rin bit onto the popsicle stick a little, shoving his free hand into the pocket of his green jacket. “Naw, it’s okay. They’re kinda cute. Like Gou but…times two.”

“Really? They weren’t too much trouble?”

“You handled them pretty well.”

“Did I really?” Makoto was impossibly modest. “Well…”

 _He’s probably like a dad!_ “You’d probably make a really good dad or something.” Rin continued to bite the stick absentmindedly.

Makoto paused and tilted his surprised (and puzzled) green eyes at Rin. “Hm?”

 _Ah shoot!_ If Rin had sharper teeth, or more than just one sharp tooth, he would’ve broken the stick into two out of sheer embarrassment. “Nothing!” He flushed pink and shook his head, grinning in embarrassment and babbling madly. “I wasn’t thinking! I mean like, _hypothetically speaking_ , ‘cause we’re still in elementary school and…” He trailed away as Makoto chuckled in amusement.

“Nah, I’m not sure if I’d make a pretty good dad. Haru says I spoil them too much, not that he’s any different.” Makoto commented mildly, turning to glance at the playground. He sounded vaguely amused as if remembering the conversation, and Rin didn’t know why he frowned.

“Nanase’s good at swimming but not with kids probably.”

“Hm?”

 _Stop muttering!_ “Ah! Er...ah…nothing…I should, uh,” Rin coughed a little. “Y’know, go.”

“Oh so fast?” Makoto blinked at Rin. Rin wondered if he was imagining a slight disappointment in those green puppy-like eyes.

“Yeah! I’ve been out for a while anyway!” Rin nodded, rubbing the back of his head. “See you on Monday?” He made ready to sprint off before he spouted any more nonsense. Uncool, totally uncool.

“Of course,” Makoto’s face creased into a smile. “See you on Monday.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A'right. It's been a long time since I've posted fanfiction (like I said earlier) so I'm so pleased by how many people like it ; v ; Go check out this adorable comic that dreampod (@tumblr) drew based on the first chapter: http://dreampod.tumblr.com/post/64834140119/dreampod-there-should-be-a-warning-by-now-to
> 
> I get really paranoid when I proofread my chapters and when I upload them because I keep feeling that I've made the characters OOC or inconsistent somehow, so I hope if there is any it's still excusable. Nevertheless, hope you enjoyed this chapter. The fluff in the entire fic as a whole is very vague, but cute nonetheless (I hope)!
> 
> (Also, stay aware of the chapter titles?)


	3. Was incredibly caring

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aki (Zaki-chan) gets a short appearance! Rin gets more dokis! Thank you for reading!

_Rin remembered there were special occasions where his mother would pick him up from school spontaneously in her small car before he transferred to Iwatobi Elementary, before his mother became busier with work. Those special occasions weren’t really ‘special’, simply just his mother being able to get off work early or perhaps Rin got sick that day in school._

_But other than those days, Rin would go home from school by himself, or with Gou depending on their schedules – whether or not Rin had swim club, whether Gou was going with her friends._

_Not that he didn’t like walking home on the 11 Bus (strictly speaking, his legs), but he did remember an instance when he was in maybe first or second grade, when his father spontaneously picked him up from school on his big bicycle to go to the seaside, the wind whipping their hair and carrying their laughter._

\---

Rin sneezed for the third time during lunchtime on Monday. Makoto looked at him in surprise and a degree of concern while Haruka furrowed his brows at him, his chopsticks interrupted from picking up a piece of mackerel.

“Are you cold, Matsuoka-kun?” Rin accepted the pack of tissues offered to him from Makoto.

“--ish,” Rin sniffled, taking a piece of tissue out and shamelessly blowing his nose. Aki, who sat opposite him, giggled softly.

“It’s been a little chilly,” Aki offered. “My neighbor caught a cold yesterday.”

Rin ducked his head, focusing on his lunch, to avoid Makoto’s obvious (but not surprising) concern. “I didn’t get enough sleep last night,” Rin responded. “But I’m okay.”

Makoto hummed a little and nodded, though he didn’t look convinced, while Haruka frowned at Rin some more. The sharp blue eyes were making Rin squirm in his seat a little.

“What, Nanase?” Though they had been in the same classes and swam together for quite a while, Rin still sometimes found Haruka’s judgmental and unreadable gaze slightly unnerving.

Haruka pursed his lips and for a second Rin thought he was just going to look away sharply and not say anything, as he often did.

“You can’t swim if you’re sick.”

“Oh? Worried, are you, Nanase?” Haruka narrowed his eyes in response. To Rin’s amusement and triumph, the dark-haired boy turned back to his lunch and chomped at a piece of mackerel.

Makoto chuckled lightly. Rin was starting to feel like he could barely get enough of that soft sound. “Haru-chan, don’t be so rude,” (Rin guessed Makoto was doing that weird mind-reading thing on Haruka again.) He ignored Haruka’s muttered complaint at the honourific and instead looked at Rin. “But he’s right, swimming might just make it worse.”

“I’m fine, I’m fine!” Rin insisted, waving a hand. “I’m not even sick.”

“Are you sure?” Aki inquired, shutting her lunch box.

“Totally sure. Very sure.” Both Aki and Makoto smiled in amusement at Rin, to which he responded by making an exaggerated grimace at them before picking up his lunch box and cramming the rice into his mouth. He barely noticed Aki getting up to join some other girls in the classroom, suppressing a grin from bursting on his face when he remembers Makoto’s concerned gaze.

Later on, he saw it again as they made for the school gates as the shrill bell rang, indicating the end of the school day.

“Are you still sure, Matsuoka-kun?” Makoto quickly caught up to Rin before the latter could sprint off as he usually did. “You sneezed quite a few times during the last period.”

“Ahhhh, I’m fine, Tachibana!” Rin brushed Makoto off, flashing his teeth in a confident grin. “Nothing can prevent this strong shark from swimming! You don’t see anything stopping Nanase from that, do you?”  _Except for you, ‘cause you care a lot._

“Well—“

Rin waved a hand. If he caught those concerned green eyes fixated on him again he might just burn up. “I’ll be fine! I’ll see you later!”

.

.

.

Maybe it wasn’t the best of ideas, but Rin wasn’t going to say it.

Nope.

Except he just felt a little more tired than usual. Which was ridiculous because after swimming he always felt  _energized_ , and Olympic swimmers don’t want to flop down on the ground after swimming practice!

Let’s just say Rin had already used up the pack of tissues Makoto had given him earlier that day. And the one Aki offered to him during a brief break.

Rin stepped out of the swim club building and sighed. The jog home suddenly felt very daunting and it wearied him.

“Matsuoka-kun?”

Rin turned to see Makoto jogging up to him. Haruka (or Nagisa for that matter) was nowhere to be seen.

“Before you ask Tachibana,” Rin held up a hand. “I’m fine!”

Makoto blinked and Rin wondered if he imagined the slight reproachful look in the green eyes. “You don’t look very well, Matsuoka-kun.”

Rin opened his mouth to protest. Then he huffed through his nose – or tried to – and glanced to the side. “I don’t  _feel_ very well.”

“Ah...I didn’t think you would say it, Matsuoka-kun,” Makoto sounded surprised and amused, which made Rin huff some more. “Maybe you shouldn’t jog home today.”

From over Makoto’s shoulder, Haruka was trailing out of the entrance with Nagisa hopping after him excitedly. Rin debated in his head.

“…Guess not.”

He actually felt a little better in directly making the decision.

Makoto smiled. “I can give you a ride to the train station on my bike.”

“Eh? Your bike?” Rin realized belatedly that Makoto hadn’t shown up during their usual jog to the swim club. He remembered Haruka’s mutters about fish and a dress but Rin had been too busy sneezing to actually pay attention. He almost felt guilty for it.

“Yeah,” Makoto tilted his head. “I had to run a couple of sudden errands for my mom before swimming practice, and I needed the bike for that.” Soft laughter.

“Oh.” Rin’s attention was diverted again as he caught a flash of yellow.

“See you tomorrow Mako-chan! Rin-chan!” Nagisa was waving wildly at them as he jogged off. Haruka had already made some distance.

Rin wondered if Makoto felt anything about Haruka leaving without saying a single word of goodbye – never mind  _Rin_  because they were rivals – and then pushed the thought of way.

If Makoto was aware of what Rin was thinking, he didn’t show it. He had smiled and waved Nagisa goodbye, his gaze lingering briefly as he watched Haruka’s back. Then he looked at Rin directly again. “Well?”

“Huh? Well uh…” Rin somehow felt like he wouldn’t mind the reprieve from walking all the way to the train station, but he wasn’t quite sure how to say it. Makoto’s concerned and non-judgmental gaze continued to wash over him.

Rin scratched his cheek, making some awkward lopsided grin and nodded.

Makoto smiled.

.

.

.

The breeze felt nice against the back of Rin’s neck as he sat on the back of Makoto’s bicycle, facing backwards, with Makoto pedaling easily along the side of lanes. The route Makoto was taking didn’t lead to any seaside roads, but they had just pedaled past the river earlier on and Rin felt just as satisfied.

There wasn’t much talking, what with Makoto cycling and Rin just feeling vaguely wistful. Yet Rin found he enjoyed the bike ride more than anything during the entire day.

“There we go.”

The bicycle made a shrill, squeaking noise as Makoto pulled the brake, putting down his foot to steady the bike as it slowed down.

“Ah right.”

Rin hopped off the bike, swinging his legs a little one at a time. Makoto steadied the bike and smiled at Rin.

“You’ll be alright, Matsuoka-kun?” Rin felt warmed by Makoto’s gaze and genuine tone.

He grinned just so he could match Makoto’s lightheartedness. “Yeah, probably! I probably just need to rest up.”

“Okay then,” Makoto adjusted the bicycle a little before reaching over and nonchalantly patting Rin on the head. “Get well soon.”

Rin didn’t quite remember the proper response he gave to Makoto afterwards as he got on the train a little later. He just remembered babbling something about the train will be arriving soon, and Makoto waving, a “get plenty of rest!” and the sunset against the brunet’s back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After a while I think it becomes less of Makoto being like a daddy/mommy but Makoto just being Makoto and it gives Rin lots of dokis. I also realize I really like Makorin fluff in High Speed! age.
> 
> Also, for those with tumblrs, I also upload the chapters on tumblr on my writing blog (my main blog is also named 'brewcha' whoop whoop): http://lewbrewery.tumblr.com so go check it out if you want to see it on tumblr (I'll upload this chapter on there later in the day).
> 
> Once again, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I haven't read High Speed! in a while so I hope I haven't made much mistakes on that part. Also, I think you can anticipate a longer chapter next time.


	4. And it was something Rin missed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Actually not quite sure if this chapter is any much longer than the previous ones (I'm not very bright) but I hope you enjoy this! A bit more of Rin just wanting some lovin'.

_Sometimes, when their mother got sick, both Rin and Gou would go out of their way to make her as comfortable as possible. Gou’s school was closer to home, so she would be home before Rin and already fluffing pillows and making tea. When Rin got home, they both would make dinner together. Each time their mother would try to get up and make dinner for them, but each time Gou would shake her head repeatedly and Rin would insist with his big grin that they could do it themselves, and “you need to get some rest mom!”_

_Rin knew his Pops, back then, would sometimes leave work early, or even take an entire day off when their mother got sick, and the other way round as well (though that was rare)._

_Rin was not unfamiliar with the warm fragrance of ginger tea and chicken soup, sometimes congee, because he would always insist on caring whenever his mother, or Gou, got sick. Not that he_ never _got sick, but nowadays his mother was always so busy he made sure to never burden her. After all, his Pops rarely ever got sick._

\---

So Rin would admit it. He wouldn’t mind admitting it right now.

Going swimming yesterday was a _terrible_ idea.

When he got home yesterday, his mother and Gou were already home and he wouldn’t stop sneezing. Rin was pretty sure he nearly dozed off during dinner and after taking a bath he flopped straight down onto bed.

Needless to say he woke up this morning with a fever and an onslaught of sneezes.

His mother took the morning off work to take him to see the doctor, and after making him lunch she had to go to work (he wasn’t hungry at that time so she left it on the stove). Rin almost felt guilty for keeping her in the first place, but he felt vaguely comforted at the same time.

It was 2:45PM and all Rin had been doing all day was plodding around the house, watching TV, sleeping between intervals and taking his medicine when he ought to.

He felt kind of lonely.

.

.

.

At 4:21PM, the doorbell ringing interrupted Rin’s doze. He hadn’t even realized he was dozing in bed with a magazine (that he stole from Gou’s room because he was _that_ bored) but nevertheless kind of wanted to ignore the doorbell anyway.

Not that it mattered, because Gou had came home 20 minutes earlier (she had gone out with some of her classmates when school let out just to give Rin some extra peace and quiet) and she was now clattering down the stairs to answer the door.

Rin heard the click of the front door opening.

“Oh! Come in! Big brother is upstairs in his room.”

Whoever it was, Rin burrowed underneath his blankets and didn’t catch the reply to Gou’s greeting.

“Big brother!” Gou knocked on the door and came in anyway. “One of your friends is here to see you! Do you need anything?” The question was directed away from Rin.

“Ah I’m fine. Thanks, Gou-chan.”

_Hold up._

“It’s Kou! Well, I’ll be in my room, big brother!” And with that, the door closed.

As soon as the door clicked shut, Rin threw back his covers and sat up to see Makoto standing, albeit a little awkwardly, in his room.

Bright green eyes blinked at Rin. “Hi, Matsuoka-kun,” Makoto smiled.

Rin opened his mouth to say something but no words came out, mostly due to surprise. What was he _doing_ here?

Makoto tilted his head. “Ah…sorry if I interrupted your sleep…”

“Don’t apologize,” Rin shook his head and rubbed his face. His temperature hadn’t really gone down, so his face was still warm. “Why’re you here? I mean, totally cool, but isn’t there swimming practice?”

“Oh yeah,” Makoto laughed. “I thought I’d visit you, that’s all, just to see how you were doing. You didn’t look that well yesterday.”

He was glancing around. It reminded Rin of a puppy in a new set of surroundings.

“Uh…you can sit if you want,” Rin slid off his bed, acutely aware of his pajama set with shark prints. “It’s _kiiiiinda_ messy in here…”

“It’s fine,” Makoto put down his backpack and sat down. “Zaki-chan told me to send you her well wishes. Haru is hoping you’d get well soon.”

“Nanase?” Rin didn’t mean to sound so disbelieving.

“Uh huh,” Makoto shifted a little and smiled. “He didn’t say it, but I could tell.”

“I guess if you put it like that, I can believe you,” Rin couldn’t help but laugh. He still felt acutely embarrassed because _Makoto is here????_ But at the same time, he could really do with the company. So long as he didn’t sneeze in the brunet’s face.

Makoto was unzipping his backpack. “Before I forget, are you hungry, Matsuoka-kun?”

“Well, uh…” The last thing Rin ate was the lunch his mother had made earlier in the day. He hadn’t eaten much else, too bored and sick to be hungry.

Before he could reply, though, Makoto had pulled out a large thermos from his backpack and handed it to Rin.

“Oh. What’s this?” Rin rubbed his nose. The wide flask felt warm.

“In case you were hungry,” Makoto smiled. “I told my mom I was going to visit you and she made some things.” He turned back to his backpack and pulled out another thermos, the smaller kind that Rin recognized as the ones that usually contained a beverage.

Rin felt self-conscious.

“Your mom’s nice,” was all Rin managed to muster. Makoto’s smile was gentle, his green eyes sloped down at the sides. Rin wondered absentmindedly if Makoto’s mom had a similar smile.

Flushing, Rin ducked his head and focused on fiddling with the thermos lid, opening it before doing the same with the inner cover.

A warm, delicious smell made Rin’s stomach growl.

Really loudly.

“I take that Matsuoka-kun is pretty hungry,” Makoto was tilting his head and smiling in amusement, and Rin flushed bright red.

He grinned awkwardly. “It smells nice! That’s probably it…” Somewhere along the way Makoto had proffered a spoon that probably came with the thermos, and Rin picked it up at his stomach’s bidding. “You…uh…don’t mind if I…?”

“Not at all,” Makoto chuckled. “You don’t mind if I stayed?”

“Not at all.” This time, Rin grinned with genuine cheerfulness at the other boy.

He felt gratified when Makoto beamed back at him.

.

.

.

The bigger thermos had contained hot and freshly made congee, and Rin found himself praising Makoto’s mother over and over again in his head as he ate. Not that his own mother didn’t make good food, but there was a certain feeling of _homeliness_ that made Makoto’s mother’s cooking better.

The other thermos, turned out, was ginger tea that Makoto’s mother had brewed. Makoto had insisted Rin take a cup, at least, before saving the rest for later. And asides from the two flasks, Makoto had also been carrying Rin’s homework for him and Rin vaguely remembered himself babbling something dumb when Makoto handed it to him.

It was so obvious that Tachibana Makoto _cared_.

It was 5:54PM, and Makoto was laughing at some funny anecdote Rin had told him. A little while earlier, the both of them had gone down to the kitchen to wash the thermos (Rin had insisted, and Makoto didn’t want Rin to do it in his ill state). The entire time both had chattered nonstop.

“…so the papers just _flew_ and the look on his face was the _best!_ ” Rin finished, grinning as Makoto dissolved into another fit of laughter.

“You’re terrible, Matsuoka-kun,” Makoto’s laugh slowed to a giggle. “I’m terrible. I shouldn’t be laughing about that kind of thing.”

Rin just grinned, rubbing his nose. “But you laughed anyways. You laugh so easily, Tachibana.”

“Mhm, just a little,” Makoto smiled.

Rin sighed with some content and sat back down on the floor. He had forgotten that he was still in his shark-printed pajamas. “I wonder how the others are doing at the swim club.”

Makoto hummed a little and glanced at the clock, his green eyes blinking wide in surprise when he noticed the time. “Not much, I think. I wonder how Haru-chan is coping.”

Rin didn’t know why he felt an uncomfortable twinge. “Nanase’s not a baby.”

Makoto glanced at him with plain surprise before eyes did that downturned _thing_ again as he smiled. “I guess not.”

Great. Now Rin felt guilty. He folded his arms on the table and laid his head on it sideways. “Yeah, well, I get to be a bit of a baby too.”

He couldn’t see the expression on Makoto’s face, but he felt a fizzle of warmth when he heard the brunet’s light chuckle. “I guess you’re right.” And they lapsed into a silence.

Come to think of it, Rin felt a little tired. They had been doing nothing but laughing and joking and chatting (and for Rin it included eating). His stomach felt full and he was warm…still warm like he was this morning, but there was an additional kind of warmth. Something only Makoto’s soft green eyes, patient smile and caring tone can induce.

“Matsuoka-kun, are you tired? Maybe you should rest?”

Before Rin could lift his head to respond, Makoto had shuffled into his view and was leaning over. A cool, gentle hand had brushed aside his messy bangs and was pressing lightly against his forehead.

_Oh my god._

“You’re still pretty warm, Matsuoka-kun,” Makoto’s eyes were darkened with worry. As if on complete cue, Rin sniffled. “Oh, you should rest. I shouldn’t have kept you talking just now.”

“No!” Rin sat up and Makoto blinked at him in surprise, reminding Rin of a deer he saw once on a documentary. “I mean…I didn’t mind the talking! I’m just tired. Y’know, when you’ve eaten and your belly is all warm and you feel all fuzzy…” What the hell was he babbling on about?

But Makoto didn’t seem to mind, the light green returning back to his eyes. “I suppose…but really, Matsuoka-kun, you should rest, you’re still sick after all.”

The concern in Makoto’s voice made Rin want to roll on the floor. Instead, he buried his face in his arms again.

“You’re not my…” Nagisa’s high-pitched voice rang in Rin’s head and he furrowed his brows. “…You’re not my dad, Tachibana.”

“Eh?” Makoto sounded surprised, but then his voice softened again. “Of course not. But I’m your friend, Matsuoka-kun. Friends can take care of you, right?”

Was this the kind of stuff Makoto said to Haruka? Rin was seriously questioning Haruka’s supposedly indifferent attitude towards Makoto (and Rin would swear that his rival even sometimes looked annoyed at Makoto’s insistence, but Rin didn’t know Haruka like Makoto did).

Rin mumbled some sort of response and Makoto laughed softly. “Come on, Matsuoka-kun, you can’t sleep here.” A hand was tugging at his sleeve.

Somehow, with Makoto’s insistence, Rin winded up back in his bed with the covers pulled over him. And though Rin hadn’t asked him, Makoto had decided to tidy up Rin’s room, putting away the things that were lying on the floor, occasionally asking Rin where one thing ought to go.

Rin suddenly felt jealous of Haruka. But it felt like an ugly feeling so he ignored it, instead focusing his attention (though it was starting to wane as his eyes threatened to close repeatedly) on Makoto as he chattered softly and moved around the room. It was 6:10PM.

“I think I’m done,” Makoto finally said, patting his hands on his shorts and glancing around before his gaze settled on Rin. Rin compared the fluttery feeling to a butterfly deciding to land on his nose. “It’s starting to get late…I should go. Matsuoka-kun?”

“Don’t—I mean…” Rin was thinking straight, his mind ready to drift off to sleep. He nearly said _don’t go_. He closed his eyes. “…Hey, Tachibana?”

“Hm?” Rin couldn’t see Makoto but he could imagine the latter tilting his head.

“Can you…do that thing again…?”

“Eh? What thing?”

“Pat…pat my head…”

Rin heard Makoto chuckle, though it was laced with surprise as well. “Pat your…head? Wouldn’t that…wouldn’t that disturb you, Matsuoka-kun?”

_Of course it won’t._ Rin kept his eyes closed, snuggling a little bit more under his covers. He couldn’t understand why he’d ask such a ridiculous request yet he’s too sleepy and tired to care. _‘Cause I like it._

Makoto didn’t press Rin, but a couple of moments later Rin heard someone shuffle closer and kneel down beside his bed. Another moment later and the same cool, gentle hand from earlier on was slowly, a little tentatively, patting his hair down. “Like…like that, Matsuoka-kun?”

“Mhmhm.” Rin’s face flushed hot and he hoped the other would excuse it as his fever. He felt like a baby and normally he hated feeling like a baby but he actually kind of wanted to feel like one at that moment.

Rin hadn’t felt like that for a while.

Makoto was humming to himself absentmindedly, the hand continuously patting Rin’s head until the patting became more like petting and eventually the petting began to make soothing strokes on Rin’s head.

_God._ Makoto could be a dad or a mom or a big brother or a friend and it didn’t even matter to Rin right now because he was beginning to doze off and _he liked this so much._

“Matsuoka-kun, are you asleep?” The hand didn’t stop.

As Rin drifted off to a proper slumber, he vaguely felt the hand eventually stopping and someone tucking the covers over him properly. The soft padding of fading footsteps, the picking up of a bag, the door opening.

“Get better soon, Matsuoka-kun.”

The door closed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Just one more chapter to go, I should think, unless I come up with some other bright new idea but yes. Thanks for sticking this long, I hope I didn't disappoint any. I also kind of winged through the last few paragraphs of this chapter so I hope it turned out fine...
> 
> Next (and final) chapter will be in the present day. Whoop whoop. Let's just say I like doing subtle fluff for this fic and nothing too much.


	5. And always remembered.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Back to the present.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter! I hope you enjoy! (I hope y'all have been looking at the chapter titles too!)

_When Rin moved to Australia, it wasn’t so bad. His mother had been incredibly worried; unsure of how he could cope being in a foreign country by himself._

_Rin had always known how to take care of himself from the word ‘go’._

_Yet when Rin was in Australia, he wished there was someone who would ruffle his hair and praise him, who would ask him if he was all right, who would take him home when he needed it, who would take care of him when he was sick._

_People in Australia were nice, but Rin always remembered a tall brunet boy with the most gentle green eyes and softest smiles._

\---

Rin opened his eyes.

For a moment he couldn’t remember where he was, but a foot kicking lightly at his waist made him sigh.

Rin rolled over and sat up, shoving Nagisa to where Rei was sleeping. The blonde made some sleepy, muffled protest but didn’t wake up, instead flopping over on the blunette’s sleeping form.

For some odd reason Rin couldn’t properly go to sleep. It wouldn’t make sense because he, Haruka, Makoto, Nagisa and Rei had stayed up all night having some movie marathon and playing video games using Makoto’s game console that Makoto brought from his house for the occasion.

Basically being really dumb but also having fun at the same time.

Rin rubbed the back of his head and surveyed the sleeping forms that crowded Haruka’s living room. Nagisa was flopped over Rei, Rei didn’t seem to be bothered by it, Haruka was sleeping on his side in the corner and…

“Rin? You’re awake?”

A hushed voice made Rin look up and turn to see Makoto sitting away a little and facing the outside with one of the cushions in his lap, though he had turned around a little to look at Rin.

Rin, not wanting to wake the others up, just shook his head and got up, carefully treading over Nagisa and Rei to where Makoto was.

 _I thought I was really tired._ Rin stretched his arms above his head, now that he had more space. Makoto was still looking at him, his green eyes clear and questioning. Rin moved over to sit down beside him.

“I was a _dumb_ kid back then.”

“Eh?” Makoto sounded surprised, though he kept his voice low so as to not wake the others. “Why all of a sudden?”

“Just a thought, s’all,” Rin rubbed the back of his neck, crossing his legs and leaning his weight against his arms as he placed them behind himself.

“Not too dumb,” Makoto remarked, patting the cushion, which Rin realized on closer inspection, was one of Nagisa’s many gigantic penguin plushies. “Less teeth, of course.” Rin laughed at that.

“You saying crap about my teeth?” Rin nudged Makoto’s knee with a foot and the six-feet-tall boy laughed softly. Rin would never understand how someone so large and tall could make that kind of gentle sound.

“So why are you awake?” Rin shrugged a shoulder at Makoto. “Sitting here and holding that monstrosity Nagisa brought.” He nodded at the penguin.

Makoto laughed again. “It’s not a monstrosity. It’s kind of cute, actually.”

“Uh huh.”

“I’m serious!” Makoto glanced at Rin’s genuinely skeptical gaze and subsided into another soft laugh.

“Well _I’m_ awake because I’m suddenly hit by the thought of how dumb of a kid I was back then,” Rin shrugged again. “What about you?”

Makoto hummed. “It’s funny, because I was remembering something from back when I was younger, but couldn’t figure out what.”

“How does that even work?”

“I don’t know but…”

“Mako-chan? Rin-chan?”

_Ah, whoops._

Both boys turned around at the same time to see Nagisa hovering nearby, his hair in a mess while he rubbed his eyes sleepily.

“Sorry, Nagisa, did we wake you?” Makoto’s voice was soft and apologetic.

“No not really…” Nagisa yawned. “I just needed the bathroom and heard RinRin saying how he was a dumb kid.” He giggled sleepily. Rin scowled.

“Oi.”

“Sorry, sorry,” Nagisa giggled again and shuffled over. “But, ne, Mako-chan, Rin-chan, I was remembering something too.”

Makoto laughed as Nagisa flopped over his back, his arms hanging over Makoto’s shoulders. “Remembered what? Ow, Nagisa, you bumped your head against mine.”

“Sorry, Mako-chan~” Rin watched the blonde roll lazily back onto the ground and proceeded to lie there. Rin poked him in the stomach and said blonde yelped.

“Rin-chan!” Nagisa pouted and rolled onto his stomach.

“What were you remembering, Nagisa? From when you were younger as well?” Makoto interjected before Rin could decide whether or not to sit on the younger boy.

“Something like that,” Nagisa nodded, rubbing his eyes again. “Back in the old swim club. Rin-chan asked me a question about Mako-chan.”

_A question?_

_…Oh shit not that dumb question._

“Uh Nagisa—“

“He asked me,” Nagisa giggled, ignoring Rin’s attempt to interrupt. “Something about Mako-chan always fussing over Haru-chan, and I said you’re like a mom, but Rin-chan said that wouldn’t make sense.” Makoto was blinking at Nagisa with genuine curiousity and surprise.

“I didn’t—“

“ _Shhhhhh,_ Rin-chan, don’t interrupt,” Nagisa’s hand flapped sleepily in Rin’s direction. “And, and then, Mako-chan came over and Rin-chan covered my mouth, and Mako-chan was gonna go check on Haru-chan but then he did this—“ To Rin’s horror, Nagisa lurched up and flopped over Rin’s back and proceeded to ruffle Rin’s hair.

“ _Hey!_ ”

“Nagisa!” Makoto chided softly, though he was laughing a little. He reached over to put a hand on Nagisa’s shoulder, effectively peeling the blonde off Rin’s back. “You’ll wake everyone else. And did I really do that?”

“Definitely!” Nagisa nodded. “And Rin-chan was like,” He stopped, cleared his throat and did his best imitation of Rin’s voice. “’ _Do that again, Tachibana.’_ ”

“I did not!” Rin instantly denied, aiming a swat at Nagisa, who instantly dodged despite his grogginess. “And I didn’t sound like _that,_ damn it, when I was a kid!”

“I forget nothing!” Nagisa declared, stumbling to his feet and flashing a thumbs-up at Rin and Makoto. “It happened! It was so _funny—_ “

“Um, Nagisa?” Makoto suddenly spoke up before Nagisa could go on. “Didn’t you say you needed the bathroom?” Nagisa blinked.

“Oh right,” Nagisa shook his head. “Nature is waiting to be answered!” He declared in a loud, though sleepy, whisper before turning and heading for the bathroom. Or the general direction of it anyway.

Rin waited for the sound of a door closing before sighing loudly and rubbing his face, ignoring the warmth that was spreading over his cheeks. “I swear to god…”

Makoto laughed. “Did that really happen?” Rin blushed in spite of himself.

“I ‘unno,” Rin muttered, even though he remembered it clearly now thanks to Nagisa, as well as everything that came after.

He was such a _dumb_ kid.

Makoto shook his head and smiled. “Well that wasn’t what I was trying to recall, but it might explain a lot of things.”

Rin rubbed his nose and stared at the floor. “What things?”

Makoto didn’t answer straightaway. Rin shifted awkwardly for a while before turned to look at Makoto.

Rin felt his stomach flip.

 _He hasn’t changed_ was the thought that ran through Rin’s mind when he saw Makoto’s expression. Makoto’s head was tilted slightly, his green gaze soft and gentle, his smile soft and sweet.

Except, if Rin remembered correctly, back then Makoto’s eyes had been unquestionably open-booked. It was always either concerned, happy, amused, disappointed, or something along those lines.

Rin wondered if he was imagining the _coyness_ in the way Makoto was looking at him right now.

“Ma…” Rin stopped and coughed, feeling all too warm all of a sudden. “Makoto?”

The sound of a toilet flushing broke through the moment and Makoto blinked. It was gone. Rin wasn’t sure whether to feel relieved or disappointed. “Hm? Ah, we should get back to sleep or we’ll be too tired tomorrow morning.”

Rin nodded, a little too rapidly, looking away. “Right.” He was vaguely aware of Makoto getting up and stretching. Something soft dropped onto Rin’s lap and when he blinked he realized it was the penguin plushie that Makoto had been holding absentmindedly. Rin looked up.

“Go to sleep soon, okay?” Makoto was doing that _thing_ where he smiled and tilted his head, making Rin blush again.

“Of course, yeah, don’t worry dude,” Rin mumbled, looking away again and rubbing the back of his neck. He didn’t see Makoto smile.

“Alright then,” As Makoto walked passed him; Rin felt the taller boy’s hand ruffle his hair softly.

“Good night, Rin.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoooooooooooo. Thanks for sticking along, guys. I'm so, so happy with the response I got from TSAM. I'm sorry to end it here but that was how I had planned it. I'm definitely going to be writing more fanfiction in the future, definitely MakoRin, and definitely some High Speed! cuteness (because I can't get enough of that).
> 
> The fluff in this fanfiction was pretty subtle, I think, so I hope it was alright nonetheless, and that TSAM was an enjoyable read. Thank you all for reading <3 See you next water time!


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